Batson
Batson et al. (1981)
Experimental testing of the empathy-altruistic theory
Aim:
To investigate participants’ motives to help when they had the opportunity to escape.
Procedure:
- Participants were students in an introductory psychology class at university. They were tested individually.
- Before they participated they filled out a questionnaire about themselves. Each participant was led to believe that he or she was an observer to a test where another student (Elaine) was being tested in recall of digit numbers.
- Participants read a short description of Elaine. Each description was manipulated so that the real participants could either identify with Elaine (high empathy) or not (low empathy).
- Participants then watched Elaine over a close-circuit TV (in fact a pre-recorded video). After two trials Elaine received electric shocks. She clearly expressed they were painful.
- Participants were asked if they would be willing to help Elaine by taking her place.
- Half of them heard that they could either take her place or fill out a questionnaire and then leave (easy escape situation). The other half were told that they could either take her place or watch Elaine go through the remaining eight trials (difficult escape situation).
· Then participants had to say what they wanted to do. When they had chosen, the experiment ended and they were debriefed.
Results:
- High empathy condition: Most participants agreed to help Elaine. It did not matter much whether it was easy or difficult to escape.
- Low empathy condition: Most participants withdrew in the easy escape condition. When it was difficult some preferred to offer help.
Evaluation:
The experiment involved clever manipulations with operationalized variables. This raises methodological considerations such as the possibility of demand characteristics. The participants were all psychology students and we cannot rule out that they guessed the aim of the experiment (demand characteristics and sample bias).